Wednesday, March 24, 2010

Sometimes Unix system administrators may end-up managing few Windows servers. If that ever happens to you, be prepared to do some basic administrative tasks on Windows. In this article, let us discuss how to sign microsoft executables and DLL.

Why digitally sign executable and other windows files?

You will get the following ‘Unknown Publisher’ message when a file is not digitally signed.

Fig: Unknown Publisher Message (If not digitally signed)

If you select the file -> right-mouse click -> properties -> There will not be a ‘Digital Signature’ tab for those files that are not signed.

Fig: Digital Signatures Tab (For valid signed files)

Purchase Microsoft Authenticode Certificates

You can purchase Microsoft authenticode certificate from either verisign or thawte.

During the purchase process, you’ll provide the following information: